Why It’s Good to Be the Last Single Girl Standing

Why It’s Good to Be the Last Single Girl Standing

Ever heard of saving the best for last? Good things come to those who wait? We’re here to tell you those cliches are the total truth! Here’s why it’s great to be single while all your friends are tying the knot.

You can save for something big.

While your friends are blowing their savings on a caterer, florist and wedding planner, you can put your extra funds toward a fancy vacation—or a better bridal gown someday.

You don’t have to commit to anyone—or anything.

“I am happy that while my friends are panicked about choosing dresses, centerpieces and DJs, my biggest commitment decision is whether or not I should get my hair highlighted,” says Erin L., 31, of New York City.

You will get your money back—and more.

Think marriage is light years away? Great! In 2015—or whenever you tie the knot—your friends will be older and more established, which means they’ll most likely be able to afford better gifts. Score!

You can collect benefits.

Rachel, 28, of Los Angeles, has three weddings to attend within one week: one in Michigan, one in New York and then another in Michigan (then back to L.A.). But all that inconvenience adds up to one thing: frequent-flyer miles! It pays to have to fly to everyone else’s weddings first—one day Rachel will get hitched and her honeymoon will be free. Love those miles—er, friends!

Your wedding will be better than your friends’ weddings.

No doubt you’ve helped a little in the planning of your girlfriends’ weddings. Think of that as research. By the time yours rolls around, you’ll know exactly what you want—and where to get everything.

You can savor the idea of possibility.

At any wedding or event, you never know whom you might meet. That’s a big incentive to go, whereas married people want to see their friends, but they’re not as motivated to meet more people. Yawn.

You can relax about your calorie intake (this year, anyway).

You can enjoy a lower divorce rate.

Friends who are rushing to the altar might be heading toward splitsville in a few years. Statistics show that people who wed later have lower divorce rates. According to a 2002 report from the National Center for Health Statistics, women who marry before they’re 18 have double the risk of divorce within in 10 years as those who marry at 25 or later.

You can rest assured that you haven’t given up.

Never mind that all your friends are marrying. If you’re not getting married at the moment, you know you can’t possibly be settling.

You can prolong your youth.

Married women will tell you that once they tie the knot, they start to feel old. They stay in more and socialize less. So enjoy the opportunity to still feel young—the youngest of all your friends.

You can live drama-free.

It’s inevitable: Couples have lots of fights about weddings and wedding planning. If you don’t get engaged until you’re older and wiser, you’ll be able to handle drama better and you’ll dish out smaller amounts of it. (At least, in theory.)

You can discover a new kind of comradeship.

As you get older, anyone still in your boat starts to seem both cooler and more sympathetic to you. Previously, you had only superficial ties with these acquaintances, but now that you’re both single—a fact that has never made you different, until now—you have something big in common. That’s a bonding thing! Watch the friendships grow.

You can contemplate a payback.

Getting married later means you really have time to plot proper revenge on all your girlfriends for the horrible bridesmaid dresses they made you wear! Not that you would do that, but it’s fun to think about it.